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Conversely, redback and North American black widows live in proximity with people and several hundred black widow bites are reported to Poison Control in the United States each year. Of the bites reported in the United States from 2001 to 2005, approximately 31% were treated in a health care facility, 0.5% had major complications, and none were ...
Latrodectus mactans, known as southern black widow or simply black widow, and the shoe-button spider, [citation needed] is a venomous species of spider in the genus Latrodectus. The females are well known for their distinctive black and red coloring and for the fact that they will occasionally eat their mates after reproduction.
The Australian red-back and North American widow species live near humans and bites are frequent, numbering thousands yearly. The venom produces very painful effects including muscle spasms, 'tetanus-like' contractions, nausea and vomiting, and severe generalized pain. A serious bite will often require a short hospital stay to control pain.
Latrodectus hesperus, the western black widow. “The northern black widow, Latrodectus variolus, lives in the northeastern U.S. and southeastern Canada,” Crawford says.These females lack the ...
Black widows sometimes have various marks on their back beside the red hourglass, including yellowish-orange shapes, two marks or a single dot, and their bodies are typically about a half-inch long.
The side effects of a black widow bite can include muscle cramps, headaches, profuse sweating and vomiting, according to Kansas State University Research and Extension. In rare cases, a bite can ...
Black widows are not especially aggressive spiders, and they rarely bite humans unless startled or otherwise threatened. [33] Contrary to popular belief, most people who are bitten suffer no serious damage, let alone death. Fatal bites were reported in the early 20th century mostly with Latrodectus tredecimguttatus, the Mediterranean black ...
The venom of widow spiders (Latrodectus) contains several protein toxins, called latrotoxins, which selectively target either vertebrates, insects or crustaceans. One of these toxins is α-latrotoxin and targets selectively against vertebrates; it is ineffective in insects and crustaceans. α-LTX has a high affinity for receptors that are ...